Hurray! We made it to Amsterdam!! Our flight went very well except that it is hard to sleep on a plane. It was a challenge figuring out the transportation to the hotel but the guy at the ticket counter was flattering and funny. He explained it was because he was not Dutch, but rather from Belgium.
We found our hotel which I think might be described as sketchy, but the girls love it. One might say it is right on the cusp of the red light district but for mothering purposes I will say it really is near Dam square. We have to take two, narrow flights up to our triple. Our bathroom is basically one big shower that also houses a toilet and sink. We have a teeny balcony that over looks Dam Straat and we hear all kinds of interesting noises all hours of the day.
We mostly chilled the first day trying to get our sleeping schedule right. But it still isn't! Most everyone speaks English and try as we might we do stick out like tourists.
Today (Tuesday) we woke up early to do stuff and found that people here like to sleep in. Makes sense given the commotion we heard at 4:30 that morning. We finally found a small coffee shop and had a light breakfast.
Our first stop was the Anne Frank house and as you can imagine it was very sad. The museum part was beautifully done and going through the rooms where she and her family hid was very moving. We saw her actually diary, too.
We then decided to walk to the Van Gogh museum which was farther than we thought. However, the weather was beautiful and it was so wonderful to look around at all the cool architecture. We followed one of the canals and it was quite idyllic. Everything is so pretty here and so interesting to look at. Every building seems so unique.
We took a drink break before heading to the museum. The museum was nice but we realized that many of his famous paintings are spread out all over the world...many in the US. However, I saw the painting of his room (one of my favs), a sunflower painting and an iris painting. There also was a Max Beckman show which I enjoyed but the girls were not impressed by his heavy black outlining!
We had a nice lunch at the museum and then decided to take a tram back. It took a little figuring but it saved our feet. We are now in an afternoon rest mode. The girls are napping and I'm at a McDonalds using the wireless. T-spot mobile which I had to pay for! Arghh!! It was the only place I could find!.
6 comments:
Hi,
It's good to hear from you. Don't forget to take a picture of each hotel.
Have fun...I do want something little. Please!!
Eileen
This is so cool. Your postings have painted a very nice picture on this end. Thanks. Grace just got the Diary of Anne Frank. She will be amazed that you went to her house. I request a picture of the three of you wearing berets while in Paris. I'm sure Emma would look terrific in one as well. Take care and enjoy yourselves to the max.
Mark
P.S. Good to hear that your working on the canadian accents
Hi,
I can't believe you went to Anne Frank's house that is so cool!!!!!Did you get to take pictures of the house??We miss you here at the library!!I hope your trip is fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grace
P.S.Take lots of pictures!!!
The video was great. Were you all drunk on Heineken? Bud
So great to hear from all of you.
Wish I was there.
Joan
Thanks for the comments everyone! We have been taking lots of pictures. We will try and post some, too. And even though we are American, people have been really nice to us! Surprise!
Greetings From the Proctor Library:
I love this library! It is so quaint and cozy.
I can't wait to see pictures of your adventures! Are you and the girls going to give a powerpoint lecture on your travels at the library?
Oops, I have a library visitor, got to go!!!
Have a Great Trip!
Jeanne
P.S. That was BeBe Z. she says, "Hello". She came to see if her dairy display was in order.
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